''Tom Brown's Schooldays'' is a 2005 British television film directed by Dave Moore and starring

Alex Pettyfer Alexander Richard Pettyfer (born 10 April 1990) is a British actor and model. He appeared in school plays and on television before being cast as Alex Rider, the main character in the 2006 film version of ''Stormbreaker''. Pettyfer was nominated ...

and

Stephen Fry Stephen John Fry (born 24 August 1957) is an English actor, broadcaster, comedian, director and writer. He first came to prominence in the 1980s as one half of the comic double act Fry and Laurie, alongside Hugh Laurie, with the two starring ...

. It is an adaptation of the

Thomas Hughes Thomas Hughes (20 October 182222 March 1896) was an English lawyer, judge, politician and author. He is most famous for his novel ''Tom Brown's School Days'' (1857), a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had attended. ...

1857 novel of the same name. It aired on ITV on 1 January 2005 and was released on DVD 9 days later."Tom Brown's Schooldays"
. ''Isle of Man Film''. Retrieved 2011-06-12.

Plot

Tom Brown (

) is energetic, stubborn, kind-hearted, and athletic more than intellectual. He acts according to his feelings and the unwritten rules of the boys around him more than adults' rules. The film deals with his years at the elite public school for boys

Rugby School Rugby School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Founded in 1567 as a free grammar school for local boys, it is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain. ...

. His year starts when he goes to Rugby School, where he becomes acquainted with the adults and boys who live at the school and in its environs. On his arrival, the 13-year-old Tom Brown is looked after by a more experienced classmate, Harry "Scud" East (Harry Michell). Soon after, Tom and East become the targets of a bully named Flashman (

Joseph Beattie Joseph Beattie (born 1978) is an English actor, known for portraying Malachi in the second season of '' Hex'' (2004) and Henry Crawford in '' Mansfield Park'' (2007). Background Beattie attended King Alfred School in Hampstead and later tra ...

). The intensity of the bullying increases, and, after refusing to hand over a sweepstake ticket for the favourite in a horse race, Tom is deliberately burned in front of a fire. Tom and Scud stop Flashman's bullying when Flashman is expelled after a fight with Tom in which he used

brass knuckles Brass knuckles (variously referred to as knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, knucklebusters, knuckledusters, knuckle daggers, English punch, iron fist, paperweight, or a classic) are "fist-load weapons" used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckle ...

Cast

as Tom Brown *

as Dr. Thomas Arnold *Dane Carter as Tadpole *Harry Michell as Harry "Scud" East *

as Flashman *

Clive Standen Clive James Standen (born 22 July 1981) is an English actor best known for playing Bryan Mills in the NBC series '' Taken'' (2017–2018), based on the film trilogy of the same name, as well as Rollo in the History Channel series ''Vikings'' ( ...

as Brooke *

Jemma Redgrave Jemima Rebecca Redgrave (born 14 January 1965), known as Jemma Redgrave, is a fourth-generation British actress of the Redgrave family. She played the title character in four series of '' Bramwell'', and has a recurring role in '' Doctor Who'' a ...

as Mary Arnold *Harry Smith as George Arthur *

Georgia Tennant Georgia Elizabeth Tennant (; born 25 December 1984) is an English actress and producer. She played Detective Inspector Samantha Nixon's daughter Abigail in ''The Bill'', Jenny in the ''Doctor Who'' episode " The Doctor's Daughter" and Lady Vivi ...

as Sally

Production

For scenes shot on location, all pupil roles that were not leads were played by real Rugby School students. The school all but ground to a halt for a fortnight as a large portion of the school grounds were used for shooting and the majority of male pupils were involved in taking part as extras. Several interior scenes were shot at

Aldenham School Aldenham School is a co-educational independent school for pupils aged eleven to eighteen, located between Elstree and the village of Aldenham in Hertfordshire, England. There is also a preparatory school for pupils from the ages of five to ele ...

in Hertfordshire, which was founded in 1597, a contemporary of Rubgy. Extensive cosmetic remodelling took place in some parts of the school so as to render the set historically accurate. For example, a convincing artificial well was constructed in the Old Quad where one had previously been but had since been demolished and bricked over. This particular prop remained at the school for nearly a year afterwards, as the film crew did not take it with them when they left. The Old Gym, one of the longest standing school buildings, was sequestered as a base for costumes for the extras. Stephen Fry interacted enthusiastically with the school during his time on set. He gave an almost universally attended talk to the entire school one evening, in which he, among other things, told the story of his expulsion from

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils 13-18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. The headma ...

in 1972. Approximately ten select extras (pupils) were invited to talk to him at length in the Headmaster's study on another occasion.

Differences from the novel

The start of the film includes real historical events which are not in the book: Dr. Arnold closing down the school hunt; Dr. Arnold complaining that before his time, there were no masters in the school overnight to keep the boys in order.

Accolades

The film was nominated for ''Made for TV Movie'' in 2005 by RITV.

References

External links

* Official website * {{IMDb title, 0415322, Tom Brown's Schooldays 2005 television films 2005 films British television films Films based on Tom Brown's Schooldays Television shows based on British novels British coming-of-age films Television series by All3Media 2000s coming-of-age films 2000s English-language films 2000s British films